Shortly after Christmas I wrote a brag post about getting a Garmin Forerunner 10. So far, I've used it a few times for running and cross-country skiing, and I am overall pretty pleased with it.It's pretty easy intuitive, though I did set it up in French originally.

Overview

Garmin is a leader in GPS based fitness accessories. I was looking for an alternative to running with my phone in hand, and thus a GPS watch is the perfect substitute. There are quite a few models ranging from relatively expensive (~50-60) , to very expensive (300+ dollars). The Forerunner 10 has basic capability, GPS, stop watch, normal watch and water-resistant. That's exactly what I was in need of, so it fits the bill perfectly.

Garmin also has the Garmin Connect interface, which allows you to load all of your data quickly into their system and pull up tons of various statistics. Though I have the tracking system here on this site, it is always fun to play around with other commercial software and get ideas!

What I Like

I love that it took 5 minutes to set up (including resetting it to get it out of french language mode). It was very straight forward, the manual is pretty straight forward and you can be on your way pretty quickly. The GPS so far has worked pretty accurately, with no major hiccups. I've been able to lock in pretty quickly too, which is a nice change from my cell phone GPS.

I also like the Garmin Connect system. It's got a ton of statistics and is also pretty intuitive. Loading workouts is as simple as hitting the upload button.

garmin

Yes, Buffalo is really that flat.

It has plenty of additional features, like pace setting and notifications, as well as setting routes ahead of time, which I haven't played with yet.

What I Don't Like

The only complaint that I have so far is that the default wrist band on the watch itself is a little too plastic-y. I know my dad had issues with his band breaking as well, so hopefully you can replace them fairly easily with an upgrade. Considering that is my only complaint, I think it's a pretty good product.

Recommendation

If you are looking for an entry-level fitness watch, I am pretty happy with this Forerunner 10. It was simple and exactly what I was looking for, and so far it has been a nice change. Freeing up my hands, especially while cross-country skiing the other night was extremely helpful.